Man held in Texas motorcycle crash after DA investigates

WARNING: Graphic images and language. Eric Sanders and his passenger Debra Simpson were struck by a swerving car Saturday as they tried to pass on Tin Top Highway near Granbury. Simpson is in ICU at Harris Methodist Hospital in Fort Worth. When told he hit the motorcyclists, the driver intially said “I don’t care.” Video courtesy of WFAA

GRANBURY, Texas A 68-year-old man involved in a weekend motorcycle accident that left a woman in critical condition was arrested Monday night, Hood County, Texas, Sheriff Roger Deeds said.

William Crum faces two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, which is a second-degree felony, for his involvement in the motorcycle accident, Rob Christian, Hood County District Attorney, told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram on Monday night.

Christian said Crum’s bail will be set Tuesday morning.

Eric Sanders, 37, of Granbury was driving a Kawasaki motorcycle south on Tin Top Highway on Saturday when a swerving vehicle driven by Crum caused him to crash, throwing him and his passenger, Debra Simpson, 38, from the bike.

The district attorney was investigating whether the wreck was intentional Monday afternoon.

The woman injured in the accident was flown to Texas Health Harris Hospital Fort Worth, where she remained in intensive care Monday, said Trooper Dub Gillum, a Texas Department of Public Safety spokesman. Sanders was treated and released at the scene but later sought more medical treatment.

Gillum said the wreck, which was captured on video taken from another motorcycle, occurred when Sanders tried to pass a 1996 Mercury sedan in a no-passing zone. As Sanders approached, the car driven by Crum swerved left, forcing Sanders to lose control of the motorcycle.

On the video, which had close to 3 million views on Facebook, Crum says, “I don’t care” at the scene of the wreck after he is told he hit Sanders and “I don’t care” again after he is told the crash was captured on video. Crum says on the video that he was stung by “a wasp or something,” causing him to swerve as Sanders tried to pass.

He later told media partner WFFA that he was bitten by an insect near his groin, which caused him to swerve into the motorcycle.

The Sheriff’s Department will release Crum’s mugshot in the morning.

Sanders was cited at the scene for passing in a no-passing zone and for driving with an invalid license.

Both Sanders and Simpson were wearing helmets.

A GoFundMe page for Simpson and Sanders had brought in more than $5,700 in donations by Monday night.

Granbury is about 38 miles southwest of Fort Worth.

This story was originally published October 19, 2015 at 9:57 PM with the headline "Man held in Texas motorcycle crash after DA investigates."